The ' (Church of the Holy Apostles of Christ), commonly called ', is a 7th-century

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chri ...

located in the

Cannaregio Cannaregio () is the northernmost of the six historic '' sestieri'' (districts) of Venice. It is the second largest ''sestiere'' by land area and the largest by population, with 13,169 people . Isola di San Michele, the historic cemetery island, ...

' of the Italian city of

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

. It is one of the oldest churches in the city and has undergone numerous changes since its foundation. The present building is the result of a major reconstruction project which was undertaken in 1575. The church is notable particularly for the Cornaro Chapel, an important example of Early Renaissance architecture, added by

Mauro Codussi Mauro Codussi (1440–1504) was an Italian architect of the early- Renaissance, active mostly in Venice. The name is also rendered as ''Coducci''. He was one of the first to bring the classical style of the early renaissance to Venice to replace ...

during the 1490s. The chapel is the burial place of several members of the powerful

Cornaro family The House of Cornaro or Corner are a family in Venice who were patricians in the Republic of Venice and included many Doges and other high officials. The name ''Corner'', originally from the Venetian dialect, was adopted in the eighteenth cent ...

( vec, Corner), including

Catherine Cornaro Catherine Cornaro ( el, Αικατερίνη Κορνάρο, vec, Catarina Corner) (25 November 1454 – 10 July 1510) was the last monarch of the Kingdom of Cyprus, also holding the titles of the Queen of Jerusalem and Armenia. She was queen ...

, Queen of

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

and

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''O ...

. The church houses several works of art including pieces by

Giambattista Tiepolo Giovanni Battista Tiepolo ( , ; March 5, 1696 – March 27, 1770), also known as Giambattista (or Gianbattista) Tiepolo, was an Italian painter and printmaker from the Republic of Venice who painted in the Rococo style, considered an import ...

and

Paolo Veronese Paolo Caliari (152819 April 1588), known as Paolo Veronese ( , also , ), was an Italian Renaissance painter based in Venice, known for extremely large history paintings of religion and mythology, such as '' The Wedding at Cana'' (1563) and ''T ...

History

In the 7th century

was not yet a city, but a collection of small communities scattered throughout the

lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into '' coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons ...

. St Magnus ( it, San Magno), the Bishop of

Oderzo Oderzo ( la, Opitergium; vec, Oderso) is a '' comune'' with a population of 20,003 in the province of Treviso, Veneto, northern Italy. It lies in the heart of the Venetian plain, about to the northeast of Venice. Oderzo is crossed by the Montic ...

, came to the lagoon and founded eight churches.Giordano, ''Venice Described'', p. 85 According to a legend recounted by the historian Flaminio Cornaro, St Magnus had a vision of the

Twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

who commanded him to build a church on a site where he saw twelve cranes. This location, eventually to be in the ' of Cannaregio, became the site of the church of San Apostoli. The church stands on the ' at the beginning of the ' (New Road). During the 1490s the ', built as a burial place for the wealthy Venetian Cornaro family, was added to the church.Biucchi, ''Venice: An Architectural Guide'', p. 2.22 It is considered one of the most important Early Renaissance chapels in Venice. It is unknown exactly who designed the chapel, although it is most often attributed to the architect

. At the same time a porch was added to the front of the church and a sacristy was built. These alterations were also overseen by Codussi. In the middle of the 16th century the church briefly housed the Catecumeni, a Venetian fraternity for those wishing to convert to Christianity, before they established a permanent home at San Gregorio in 1571. Shortly after this, in 1575, the church was completely rebuilt. Only parts of the earlier structure were retained, including some

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plast ...

s and the Cornaro Chapel. During the early 18th century,

Andrea Tirali Andrea Tirali (around 1660–1737) was an Italian architect working in Venice and the Veneto. He was responsible for the intricate design of the pavement in the Piazza San Marco in Venice (from 1723).

Interior

The church retains its 16th century layout: a single nave supported by two rows of columns. One chapel has the funeral monument of Count Giuseppe Mangilli, designed by Luigi Trezza with bust by

Angelo Pizzi Angelo Pizzi (1775 – Venice, 1819) was an Italian sculptor, active in a Neoclassical style. He was pupil of Giuseppe Franchi. He completed the statues of Saints Matthew and Simon for the Duomo of Milan. He made a model for a colossal statue ...

. The main altarpiece is a ''Custodian Angel'' by

Bernardo Strozzi Bernardo Strozzi, named il Cappuccino and il Prete Genovese (c. 1581 – 2 August 1644) was an Italian Baroque painter and engraver. A canvas and fresco artist, his wide subject range included history, allegorical, genre and portrait paintin ...

Cornaro Chapel

The chapel is the burial place of several members of the Cornaro family, including

Giorgio Cornaro ''Nobil Huomo'' Giorgio Cornaro, called "Padre della Patria" (1452 – 31 July 1527) was a Venetian nobleman and politician. Life Giorgio Cornaro was born in Venice in 1452. He was the son of ''Nobil Huomo'' Marco Cornaro (December 1406 – 1 ...

and his sister

the Queen of

(since removed to the church of San Salvadore elsewhere in Venice), The charitable organisation Save Venice funded the restoration of the chapel, including the relief carvings. The main altar of this chapel was the ''Last Communion of St Lucy'' (1747–48) by

Tiepolo Giovanni Battista Tiepolo ( , ; March 5, 1696 – March 27, 1770), also known as Giambattista (or Gianbattista) Tiepolo, was an Italian painter and printmaker from the Republic of Venice who painted in the Rococo style, considered an import ...

. Santi Apostoli (interno).jpg, Santi Apostoli (Venice) Font.jpg, Santi Apostoli (Venice) organo.jpg, Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Statue Stoup of St.Peter by Heinrich Meyring 1701.jpg, St Peter (

Heinrich Meyring Heinrich Meyring/ Heinrich Meiering (1628 – 11 February 1723) was a German sculptor, active mainly in Venice and the Veneto. He is also known as ''Enrico Merengo'' or ''Arrigo Merengo''. Meyring was born in Rheine, Westphalia. He is ...

) Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Statue Stoup of John the Baptist by Giacomo Piazzetta.jpg, John the Baptist (Giacomo Piazzetta)

Art

The church contains a number of paintings, including: *

, ''Gathering of Manna'', 1580–85.Nichols, ''Tintoretto'', p. 236 * Giovanni Contarini, ''Birth of the Virgin'', 1599 * Cesare da Conegliano, ''Last Supper'', 1583 * Fabio Canal, ''Communion of the Apostles and Exaltation of the Eucharist'', 17th century *

Sebastiano Santi Sebastiano Santi (1788–1866) was an Italian painter, active both in oil and frescoes. He was born in Murano Murano is a series of islands linked by bridges in the Venetian Lagoon, northern Italy. It lies about north of Venice and m ...

, ''Christ between the Apostles'', 1828 Comunione di santa Lucia - Giambattista Tiepolo.jpg, Last Communion of St Lucy (

) Santi Apostoli (Venice) - La nascita della Vergine (1599) Giovanni Contarini.jpg, Birth of the Virgin, 1599 ( Giovanni Contarini) Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Cristo fra gli Apostoli Sebastiano Santi 1828.jpg, Christ between the Apostles, 1828 (

) Santi Apostoli (Venice) - La vergine col Bambino, san Giuseppe, san Govanni Battista e sant'Antonio da Padova (1755) Gaspare Diziani.jpg, The Virgin and Child, St Joseph, St John the Baptist and St Anthony of Padua (

Gaspare Diziani Gaspare Diziani (1689 – 17 August 1767) was an Italian painter of the late-Baroque or Roccoco period, active mainly in the Veneto but also in Dresden and Munich. The artist's canvas is the largest painting of the Hermitage Museum in St. Peters ...

) Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Santa Caterina d'Alessandria, Sant'Antonio Abate, San Girolamo e San Giovanni Nepomuceno Domenico Maggiotto.jpg, St Catherine of Alexandria, St Anthony Abbot, St Jerome and St John of Nepomuk (Domenico Maggiotto) ; Ceiling paintings by Fabio Canale Santi Apostoli Ceiling by Fabio Canale.jpg, Communion of the Apostles and Exaltation of the Eucharist Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Ceilling - St Matthew and the Angel.jpg, St Matthew Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Ceilling - Paintings of Saint Mark.jpg, St Mark Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Ceilling - Painting of Saint Luke.jpg, St Luke Santi Apostoli (Venice) - Ceilling - St john and the eagle.jpg, St John

Notes

Citations

References

* * * * * * Italian * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Apostoli Roman Catholic churches in Venice Renaissance architecture in Venice 15th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Italy